YES I CAN READ!

STARING AT SOUND: THE TRUE STORY OF OKLAHOMA'S FABULOUS FLAMING LIPS

I thought I would switch things up a bit and talk about a good book I recently read, STARING AT SOUND: THE TRUE STORY OF OKLAHOMA'S FABULOUS FLAMING LIPS. I am not a big time reader so for me to take on a book it has to really catch my interest, which this definitely did. This book is a complete detailed history of the Flaming Lips, from childhood to what they are today. Every nook and cranny is explored from the formation of the band, through Wayne's tenure at Long John Silvers, the wild experiments (Boom Boxes, Zaireeka, Parking Lot Orchestra), and their original music making of the present. Author Jim Derogatis starts by painting a vivid picture of each members background and family life then takes you on a journey through the years opening their personal lives to the reader. He goes over each album, the recording process, technologies used and the good, the bad and the ugly of the sessions. He provides interesting stories and chocks the book full of information with out making it boring.

I read a bit of it to the boy (my son), but he wasn't too interested, although he did dig the few pieces of Wayne's artwork that are printed in the book.

CRUNCHY MUSIC!!!

JE SUIS FRANCE - AFRIKAN MAJIK

It seems like Je Suis France(JSF) loyalists have been waiting for this album to hit the stores for like 15 years. After the release of FANTASTIC AREA in 2003 JSF has been tossing out cd-r's left and right to keep their rabid fan base at bay while they crafted, recorded and perfected their 3rd LP AFRIKAN MAJIK(AM).

AM cranks up with a 16 minute jam that assaults your ears and draws you into JSF's mysterious world of auditory madness. After that, you are their bitch for the rest of the record as they continue to smack you around with their original brand of noisy psychedelic inde rock. It is not all an intense bombardment of crunchy noise, there are a few tracks with spacey organs and relaxing sounds that allow you to chill out before the assault continues.

I play this album once a week for my son because he really digs it. I hit play and he bobs his head, shakes his ass and bounces up and down, I can see the thanks for me in his eyes for playing kick ass tunes for his listening pleasure instead of that Barney crap.

If you are tired of the same ol' crap snatch you a copy of AM when it comes out on May 29th on Antenna Farm Records.

SWEET SOUL MUSIC

RYAN SHAW - THIS IS RYAN SHAW

Growing up in Georgia, Ryan Shaw was raised on the sweet smooth music of his church's gospel choir. He would eventually become a choir member himself as a singer and director. In the late 90's he moved to Brooklyn to pursue a career on Broadway which never really panned out, lucky for us. He was working as a choir director in NY, was heard by the right person, and the next thing you know he is recording a few tracks of sweet soul music which led to his debut album THIS IS RYAN SHAW.

Ryan's album is mainly cover songs by the likes of Wilson Pickett, Bobby Womack, Chairmen Of The Board, The Four Tops and more. He does them justice with a voice that's as smooth as Sam Cooke or Otis Redding. Instead of tossing Ryan in with your average watered down soul/r&b music of today, his album belongs smack dab in the record bin along side of the great soul singers of the 50's & 60's.

While some of the highlights of this album are "Do The 45" (The Sharpees), "I Found A Love" (Wilson Pickett) and "Workin' For A Love" (Bobby Womack) the real gems are the three original tunes by Ryan Shaw. "Nobody" and "We got Love" are 2 tunes straight from the 1950's snatched right out of Sam Cooke's song book. Ryan's voice is as smooooth as velvet on these tracks. The other original song, "Over And Done" has a little rougher sound to it, similar to Wilson Picket or Sam Moore. THIS IS RYAN SHAW is another CD that right now has permanent residence in my car....the boy (my son) truly digs this one.

FLYING THE SKY BLUE SKIES

WILCO - SKY BLUE SKY

HEY, they got chocolate in their peanut butter....so to speak. Wilco has managed to mesh the alt-country sounds of their early albums with the experimental styles of their later albums to create a close to freakin' perfect record.

As I sit here listening to Jeff Tweedy sing on SKY BLUE SKY (SBS), I can feel the sincerity and emotion in his voice. In addition to his awesome vocals, the music of each song intermingles with Jeff's lyrics to create a damn enjoyable listening experience.

"Either Way", "You Are My Face", and "Hate It Here" are going to be the fan favs, and will attract non-Wilco fans to the album. Any of those songs could be a hit on the radio....if there were any stations out there that still played good music instead of the same 20 songs everyone else plays. As for myself, I feel that "Impossible Germany" is the best track on the record. It has good lyrics (This was still new to me/I wouldn't understand/Impossible Germany/Unlikely Japan/This is what love is for/To be out of place/Gorgeous and alone/Face to face), the music wraps itself around these lyrics to bring the whole song together, and then the guitar solo/jam to end the song is out of this freakin world. The boy (my son) digs the guitar work in "Side With The Seeds" it is almost as redonkulous as the one in "Germany". Other highlights are "Shake It Off" "Walken" and "On And On And On".

From top to bottom this is a damn good album. I have enjoyed listening to it over and over again and highly recommend it to anyone who loves listening to good records. This one does not suck.

CRACKER ASS CRACKER

CRACKER - GREENLAND

Cracker has always been one of my favorite bands. With a mediocre album, and various greatest hits and cover albums released over the last few years I have not listened to their music a whole hell of a lot lately. When they released GREENLAND last year, I was curious yet skeptical about their first release of new tunes in 5 years. Of course I bought the album, cause that is what I do. I gave it a listen, then tossed it on the shelf where it has collected dust......until now.

I chalked GREENLAND up as another mediocre album after one listen. Then a few weeks ago I went to Smith's Olde Bar and saw David Lowery & Johnny Hickman perform as Cracker Acoustic Duo. They played a kick ass set list consisting of Cracker, CVB and Johnny's solo songs. They played a few songs from GREENLAND, songs I do not remember from the album, most likely because I only gave it a once over. After this show I revisited GREENLAND, I played it over and over for a couple of weeks. I listened to it everyday to and from work, taking in each track listening to each word and realizing that this is a damn good album. My 1yr old son digs the album too, he gets his baby groove on to the tracks he likes, and fusses at the ones he doesn't care too much for.

GREENLAND is an album of songs about things lost and never obtained. Lost love, lost good times, never getting what you want and times not being as good as the past. Lowery and Hickman manage to get this message of loss across in a mess of upbeat songs that you can really enjoy listening to. The cream of the crop comes at the beginning and the end of the album. GREENLAND starts off with a catchy tune, "Something You Ain't Got". It is a song about a girl he wants, who stole his heart, but she wants nothing to do with him but he still obsesses over her and spends his time drinking and fighting to battle the loneliness. It has great lyrics and the music fits perfect with it. It is a song that would fit on KEROSINE HAT and could easily be a radio hit. The second gem is at the end of the album, "Everybody Gets One For Free". This could very easily become another Cracker anthem along the line of "Teen Angst" and "Eurotrash Girl". David sings about how everybody gets what they want except for him. The lyrics are a bit comical, (started a conversation/about the United Nations/had to use my imagination/cause she was talkin' bout reincarnation) and the chorus is one that everyone can sing along with (Everybody gets one/everybody gets one for free/everybody gets one/everybody 'cept for me). Other songs such as "Maggie", "Fluffy Lucy", "Where Have Those Days Gone" and "I Need Better Friends" are great pop tunes that take a light look at love, friends and past great times. The other song that needs mentioning is "Riverside", a hard rocking number that is just fun to listen to. Johnny's guitar playing tears this one up. Lyrically it is OK, but musically it kicks some serious ass. This track could stand up on it's own as an instrumental. The rest of the 14 tracks are good, but nothing special. I wouldn't call them filler but they do not stand out as much as the tracks I have discussed.

GREENLAND has turned out to be a pleasant surprise. I am glad I went back to it because I was missing out on an awesome album. I definitely suggest giving it a listen, whether you are a Cracker fan or not. The Boy (my son) says check it out or you shall suffer the wrath of his baby death grip. Seriously, go check it out....go...stop reading....get going.....dammit go already!